The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s entry of default judgment and finding of civil contempt

On September 4, 2026, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed total victory for Davis Polk’s clients Meta Platforms Inc. and Instagram, LLC (collectively, “Meta”) in a cybersquatting case, affirming judgment, damages, fee awards and contempt findings over two separate appeals filed by defendant Leascend Technology Co., Ltd. (“Leascend”).  On November 11, 2026, the Ninth Circuit substantively denied Leascend’s petitions for rehearing, confirming Meta’s victories. 

Defendant Leascend and its alter ego, OnlineNIC, Inc., were ICANN-accredited domain name registrars who unlawfully harbored dozens of domains like “hackfacebook-now.com” in violation of cybersquatting and trademark laws under 15 U.S.C. § 1114 and 15 U.S.C. § 1125. Meta sued OnlineNIC in 2019 and later added Leascend as a party after discovering its complicity in the offending conduct.

Over five years of district court litigation, the defendants engaged in a wide range of litigation misconduct, including intentional spoliation of evidence. Judge Illston of the Northern District of California found that Leascend was the alter ego of OnlineNIC, granted default judgment and terminating sanctions against both of them, and awarded Meta damages, fees and other relief. Judge Illston also found Leascend in civil contempt and imposed sanctions after Leascend violated an asset freeze order. Leascend pursued parallel appeals on the merits and the contempt orders. The Ninth Circuit rejected those appeals, affirmed the district court’s holdings across the board, and confirmed Meta’s victories over Leascend’s requests for rehearing.

Meta’s IP, brand protection and litigation teams oversaw the litigation and drove the winning strategy. The Davis Polk team for the appeals included partner Micah G. Block, counsel Andrew Yaphe, associates Matthew J. Disler, Pablo A. Lozano and Jessica Magier. Tucker Ellis LLP was lead counsel in securing the district court victories that the Ninth Circuit affirmed.

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